Cricket Creek Bog nothing arrived

all welcome, tentatively dated before the scouting thread with mato? ah ambiguous timelines

delight cannot stand the incessant crickets chirping, the long drawn wails of cicadas. for a minute the boy thinks about slipping away, alone and eager to press on, but he's thirsty and the loam feels nice under his paws, he would only admit with great reluctance. the day felt nice, too, not the oppressive heat he was expecting, and it spoke of pleasant tidings and good omens. 

he didn't know what to do with that.

drinking his fill at a shallow pond the singing-sunlight considers his options. there's he could maybe they no; he's here, now. this is all he is, a dark brown wisp and piercing pale eyes, beautiful and maybe a little broken, but no one needs to know that but him. suddenly his loneliness feels all too oppressive and he strikes the surface of the water. he's leaned forward too far, unsteady, and delight slips into the water in a shocked jumble, betrayed by his own awkward limbs. now the crickets are laughing at him, surely, he knows it, righteous indignation plain on his face as he sits in the pool, dripping wet.

incoming small boy!

Major was really getting places! He'd travelled very far to get to where he was now, and it was utterly disappointing. He hadn't left his comfortable forest home to get stuck in a swamp, but that's what he'd done. The fiery golden boy was leaping over mud piles onto whatever solid ground he could reach. When there was no solid ground, he would have to trudge through the mud and it was miserable. Not to mention the wretched song of the bugs. Every time he came across one he would snap at it, trying his best to catch and rid the world of another cricket. 

He made it out of the seam pier areas at last, and stopped by a pool of water to clean himself. He was a proud little fox, and he didn't like looking dirty. He liked his silky sun kissed fur to be just that. He became so engrossed in his grooming that almost missed the entrance of a wolf. He looked up when he heard the splashing, his wide coffee brown eyes scanning his company. The wolf looked very sad, and was sitting in the pool, defeated. He looked pretty silly, and so Major giggled.

What're you doing in there wolfie? He asked, his despite being a larger than average fox, his voice was in the range of a prepubescent teen. Plus to a wolf, he probably didn't seem very big anyway.

the wisp has resigned himself to soak, letting the body hold metaphor for the internal state of affairs. plus what's the point of moving anyway, he just wants to sulk for a bit. he's alone anyway, no smell of wolf near enough to be worrisome, though apparently that doesn't mean he's alone, because suddenly something very small and very orange is speaking to him. del must have overlooked the fox earlier - and well duh, it's not like he's in the habit of paying attention to lesser canines - only now it's talking to him. for a moment the boy feels embarrassed to be caught in this situation, but really, who cares what a fox thinks of him?

"suffering," he announces, abandoning his usual sense of decorum. oh, but the water was getting chilly and felt a touch slimy on his fur, so he does go ahead and extract himself, rising on long limbs to shake himself out. he eyes the fox contemptuously, as if it's to blame for the neverending screeches of crickets and the dampness of his coat. "aren't you meant to be afraid of me?" the singing-sunlight asks with more teeth than usual, though he lacks any malice needed to actually be frightening - he's a soggy, sullen thing, hardly meant to be taken seriously. 

The wolf turned his head and gave a very drab and mopey response. What an emo, Major thought, holding back another giggle. The soggy dark creature dragged himself out of the water and onto solid ground. Major didn't back away or anything, he didn't see this guy as much of a threat yet. Plus, on this terrain, Major's lightness would help him run whereas the bigger wolf would sink more. So Major felt pretty confident. The wolf said he thought that foxes were supposed to be scared of wolves, and Major shrugged with a smile.

Ha, nah man I'm good. Wolves are just big foxes, I don't see why we cant all just get along. He explained, then licked his lips with his salmon pink tongue.

strangely the fox seems completely unperturbed by delight and his very sharp teeth. he frowns at the small creature, slightly put-off that his bluff has been called; there's really no way in hell he's got the energy to chase or maim the thing. "we are not," he says, scandalized, but maybe it's got a point in the second half there. but then again, "and because your lot steal food. and you're annoying," the boy adds, sticking out his tongue. he might be a yearling, but the singing-sunlight is still immature - childish, really. he sits in the mud, making a face as his body sinks slightly. gross. "well, whatever, you got a name?"

The dark furred wolf refused to accept Major's point, and called Major's species annoying. Ok so he did steal food, but at least he wasn't rude! The other even stuck his tongue out at little Major, the young fox frowned and stuck his out in return. He was very childish as well. The other asked his name, and Major responded, Ursa Major. What about you? Or can I just call you swamp wolf? He asked, a grin on his maw. He was perhaps feeling a little over confident in this situation, but he was enjoying teasing the sunken canine.

delight makes a hmph! face as the fox returns his rude gesture, but he won't be goaded any further into childish exchanges - wait is his name really "ursa major? like - a bear?" he can't help his laughing, even if it is a little mean. "nothing about you is ursine or major," the wisp points out, grinning, before answering. "and noyoumaynot, my name is delight singing-sunlight." here he does puff up impressively - not like a fox is gonna know if his surname carries any weight or  not, but to him it does and he will act like it around those who won't know any better. the effect is quite spoiled as a particularly bold cricket hops onto his paw, singing loudly - he shrieks and launches into the air, landing sideways in a sorry heap. ugh! crickets! the! worst!

The wolf found something about Major's name very funny, and the fox boy wore a very unamused expression on his face. He found nothing funny about his name, he liked it. The wolf says that Major isn't ursine or major, and Major replies as if that was the dumbest statement in the world. Duh! My family names all of their children after the constellations! Not because I look like a bear. The wolf didn't like the name swamp wolf, and countered with his own name. To this Major howled in laughter.

That may have been the funniest thing he'd ever heard. Nothing about this guy screamed Delight, just sad. And he certainly wasn't singing sunlight! At least not today he wasn't. To make things even funnier, the wolf freaked out because of a cricket on his paw, shrieking and falling. The childish fox doubled over with the giggles, rolling onto his back and laughing.

this thread is great xD

oh great now he's muddy and being mocked by a fox. "sto-op," he tried to command, but it ends up sounding like a long, sad whine. this won't do at all, the wisp thinks furiously, skin burning in embarrassment, and scrambles to his feet. the fox is still wrapped up in laughter and delight takes advantage to put his shame to good use -- he smacks his paw into the loam and flings a pile of wet mud at the fox, intent on soiling his (admittedly beautiful) silky orange fur. "take that!" he yelps, a grin splitting his own muddy face, though it isn't malicious, it's playful.

im crying i love them

Major's laughs ground to a stop when a pile of mud slammed into his side. He stood there, utterly surprised and shocked. At first he was a little angry, he'd just gotten out of the mud and cleaned himself! But then his look of shock melted into a grin, when he saw the playful look in the wolf's eyes. Major's tail began to wag and he hopped around a bit before kicking a glob of mud right back at Delight. It seemed this conversation of mockery had turned into a game, and Major was always game for a game.

at first I was like, 'let's see how annoyed Major can make delight' but like I want them to be bffs now <3

it's not that delight was denied the chance at a regular puphood, or didn't get to play, or anything so insidious, but since the catastrophe he's worked to carefully wrap himself up inside, as if joy itself is something he's not earned yet. but here and now, with this weird little fox, it's easier for the boy to reopen a part of himself he'd been trying to keep closed - and major seems into it too. del's earlier animosity fades completely into competition as they fall into full-fledged mud war - the fox's attack splatters across the side of his face and he barks a laugh, returning the assault with another thrown glob, aiming for his face. it feels pretty good to let go, he has to admit.

he's glad for the break from - himself, really, a bright spot in an otherwise bleak canvass of existence. though he may never encounter his little fox friend again, delight will think back fondly on this mud battle for years to come: for now though, the heavy feel of mud against his fur and the laughter of two creatures enjoying each other's company rings true enough.

added ending 8/30/17